Cong slipped in and out of consciousness several times, aware only of gentle hands changing bandages and helping him drink cool, refreshing water. So, when he became conscious again, he expected somebody to be offering him another drink. But there was no movement in the room. Instead of sinking back into the comforting embrace of sleep, he grew more and more awake. He assessed his body, noting an uncomfortable pressure around his middle. Swallowing, he noted that he was thirsty, and that prompted him to open his eyes and look for water.

A bowl of water was a short way away, and Cong began to ease himself to sit up. After a couple of shifts, he was exhausted, but he was determined to get a drink. A thrill ran up his spine, and he was lifted off the ground and settled against the wall. Mantis came out from behind him and crawled onto his lap.

"Welcome back," Mantis said.

Cong nodded, reaching out for the ladle. He sucked down several spoonfuls of water then settled back and looked around him. He was in their hotel room, a place he'd desperately wanted to be in for weeks. He noted that everybody else's mats were rolled up against the wall. It was late afternoon, judging by the light that filtered in through the window. He sighed and leaned back.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Where is everybody?"

"Shifu and Tigress are down wrapping up matters with the arrests from last week, Po wanted dumplings, and Viper and Crane went with him."

"So, I've been out for a week?" Cong surmised.

"A little more. Today marks day nine. Shifu said you'd probably wake up today. Your body has healed well, but you should still be sore."

"I am. So, will they be back soon?"

"Yep." Mantis shifted. "Are you doing okay?"

"I don't have the brainpower to think over what's happened," Cong replied honestly. "Wait until I eat. Then I'll shut up."

Mantis frowned, but he didn't say anything. Cong sat still, focusing on breathing. Every breath hurt a little, but his muscles began to relax. Looking down, he noted that a bandage was wrapped around his middle. Gingerly, he drew his fingers across the white surface.

"How bad is my wound?"

"It was pretty bad at first, but Shifu used some sort of nerve chi thing to heal you. Can you breathe okay?"

Cong took a deep breath and let it out. "Yes."

"Good."

Heavy footsteps sounded from the hall, and the door opened to reveal Po carrying a huge basket. When he saw that Cong was awake, he smiled.

"Oh, great! You're awake!"

Viper slithered in, her blue eyes bright with joy, and Crane shut the door behind them. The bird shook out his feathers and set down another basket, which was looped with rope and hung in Crane's beak.

"Good to see you up and about," Crane said.

Viper nodded, sliding over and coiling herself up beside him. "Hope you're hungry," she said. "These are the best dumplings in the city."

Cong smiled. "I doubt that."

Po shook his head. "No, they are. Nowhere else makes them like this."

The monkey watched as Po pulled out circular baskets of steaming dumplings. Po passed one of the baskets to Cong, who sniffed it.

"Lihua made these," Cong said. "Three blocks down, two blocks over." The others stared at him, and he smiled. "As I thought, these are not the best in the city."

"You know somewhere better?" Po asked, his green eyes gleaming with interest.

"I do indeed. Perhaps when I am well, I can take you all there." Cong picked up chopsticks and picked up a dumpling. Blowing on it for a moment, he popped it into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "Still good. Just not the best."

Po passed around the other baskets, leaving two behind. He eased himself down and picked up his own chopsticks. There was silence as they ate for a few minutes. Cong enjoyed the dumplings, and his stomach was grateful for hot food. Just as he had predicted, as the food gave him energy, he became acutely aware of all the things that had transpired. He mulled things over as he ate, and the others left him to his thoughts.

When the door opened again, Cong blinked and looked up to see Shifu and Tigress come in. The red panda's ear twitched as he registered that the simian was awake. Tigress smiled slightly.

"Dumplings," she said. "Good. We didn't get lunch."

Po passed over the food, and Shifu settled onto the floor, picking up his chopsticks. Tigress began to eat at once, but Shifu continued to stare at Cong.

"You are well?" he asked, picking up a dumpling and studying it.

"I suppose. I'm not dead."

Mantis snickered. "Not through lack of trying."

Cong frowned. "I didn't beg for him to kill me."

The room went silent, and nobody moved. Shifu placed the dumpling in his mouth and chewed slowly.

"No. You didn't. We expected to rile him, but we didn't expect for him to stab you of all people."

Cong shook his head. "Then you did not study him well." He set aside his empty basket, gritting his teeth. "Fu will not hesitate to kill people. Even me."

"Why the emphasis?" Shifu asked.

"What do you know?"

"We know about the blood money," Po said bluntly. "But we don't know much else. Mantis saw you with Fu, and we know things are complicated between you two."

Cong laughed, a bitter, booming noise. "That's putting it lightly."

"Well, explain then," Mantis said. The simian closed his eyes and was about to say no, but Mantis went on. "I told you we want to know, Monkey. So tell us."

"There's so much to tell," Cong whispered.

"Then start at the beginning," Shifu said.

Cong leaned back against the wall with a sigh, rubbing his temples. "Fu bought me when I was a baby. I never knew my real mother and father." He paused, furrowing his brow. "I was brought up by Fu to be a thief when I showed early signs of being stealthy and sneaky. He kept me in line with his fists, and I grew up to be one of the best thieves he had.

"Once I was old enough to be initiated, I rose through the ranks quickly. Very quickly. I became head of thieves when I was thirteen. People accused Fu of favoritism because they knew that he raised me. They didn't know I was a…a slave." Cong closed his eyes again. "You know I called him Master, and there is a reason behind that. I only began to call him that after people accused me of being his son. I was bitter, and I began to call him Master to alleviate their suspicions. Fu was pleased and didn't stop me."

Cong let out another breath. "I was never allowed to call him 'father'. I called him Fu. And then I called him master. It was the closest word to father I was allowed to call him, and it just complicated things more. He never hesitated to beat me. Ever. When I was a teenager, I began to rebel, as all people do, and he came down hard. I was in so much pain after that beating that I couldn't get out of bed for a week."

"That's horrible," Viper said compassionately.

"That's not the worst beating he ever gave me," Cong said. "But even through all of that, I wanted him to like me. To love me. I never knew my father, my mother. I don't know if I ever had brothers or sisters. I wanted a family, and Fu was the closest thing to family I had. The higher gang members knew me well, but they were never close. Fu, on the other hand, was too close, especially when I began to defy him in front of the rest of the gang. Every move I made, he demanded to know. Everywhere I went, he ordered me to report every detail. He had me tailed every day after I was well enough to begin to thieve again. That's when I began to hate him."

Cong paused for a drink of water. He downed several ladlefuls then lay back and just breathed for a few moments. The food had given him energy, but he was still recovering from his wound. For a minute, he considered asking for a respite, but he decided that he would only make himself dread the next day. When he had his breath back, he swallowed and picked up where he left off.

"I hated what I was for a long time. I didn't know that stealing was wrong until I was seven. As long as I didn't steal from Fu or the gang, I was praised for my thefts, and the message I got from that was that you don't steal from people you know, but if you don't know somebody, you could steal all you wanted. I know you must think I'm horrible for having thought that..."

"No," Mantis said. "You didn't know any better."

"It's how you were raised," Tigress added. "I was raised in the orphanage to think I was a monster. That doesn't mean it was right."

Cong shook his head. He couldn't believe them. Shifu cleared his throat.

"Go on, Monkey."

The simian nodded. "Well, I didn't know for so long, and then I began to realize that the police don't like it when you steal things. I never got caught by them. I was too good. But other thieves did. I saw arrests and beatings and even death so that by the time I was eight, I knew that stealing was bad. I began to feel guilty, but I still honed my skills and got better. Just before my eleventh birthday, when I was to be inducted into the gang, I asked Fu if I could stop stealing. He said no. With a slap. And he demanded that I never ask that again."

Cong rubbed his cheek, recalling the burning pain. "Well, anyway, when I was thirteen, I became the head of thieves, as I said. I was defiant and beaten when I was fourteen. I began to hate him, and my desire to leave was strengthened, but I didn't dare leave. Fu made it clear that I was his, and I knew that I was. He never let me forget that I was a slave. Every day of my childhood, he drilled into my head that I was to obey everything he said and that if I ever tried to leave, he would find me.

"At fifteen, I finally said no to Fu for the first time. My first defiance was telling him that his plan was foolish. My second was saying no to a direct order. He beat me so bad that I genuinely thought I was going to die. I couldn't move for a week, and I went very quiet. Fu thought he'd broken me, but I had decided that I would not stay with the Serpents any longer than I could help it. I was afraid of Fu. He'd never hurt me so bad. But I obeyed him until I could get away. And the first chance that I got, I did."

Cong was breathing heavily, exhaustion pulling at his limbs. He wanted to fall asleep, but he was afraid to stop talking. Shifu took away his options by standing up.

"That is enough for now, Monkey. You need to rest. Tigress, make sure he's comfortable. Mantis, put out some of the candles. We should all get some sleep."

Tigress helped Cong ease down, and the monkey was surprised to notice that his stomach had been tense. As he lay down, his body went limp and he shivered. Tigress pulled a blanket over him.

"Good night, Monkey."

"You're not a monster, Tigress," Cong said softly, already falling asleep. "But I am a thief. You should all hate me."

"We don't," Tigress replied, standing up and moving to unroll her own bed.

Cong wanted to ask why, but he was so tired that he only murmured as he was sucked into darkness.